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Quote: "However, because of their huge size, in a collision with a normal-sized car, they are more apt to kill the occupants of the other vehicle. ... This what's known as a lose/lose situation."

Only if you are in the smaller vehicle. (insert evil laugh here)

We don't have a SUV in our household, but folks against them should really take up a hobby. And let me tell you about intimidation.

Here in SoCal we have a lot of little souped up cars. Civics, Integras, Eclipses, Celicas, you know, the ones with about an inch of ground clearance, more wings than a fighter jet, and that you can hear coming from about three blocks away.

These guys love screaming in on your left, jumping in front of you as you are waiting your turn on a freeway on or off ramp, and then slam on the brakes as soon as they are in front of you. They have even been known (personal experience) to do a quick jink into your lane to get you to hit the brakes. Their way of opening a whole in traffic.

I have noticed that these guys will do this to vehicles that are of about the same size or smaller than their own.

Seems like a lot of folks that buy SUVs are just tired of these guys. When you are in a bigger vehicle, you don't have to be as worried about these guys. You see, they know about physics too. They know that in an altercation, they would be on the loosing end. They go away, to be stupid someplace else. They leave you alone.

That in and of itself, is reason enough for an SUV's exsistance.

Think I'm gonna buy the Wife a Suburban ... or maybe one of them Hummer H2s.

Best regards

Sergio

Last Friday night, on our way to see the Braves get their heads handed to them by the BoSoxs, I turned in front of a 1995 Mazda 626. I was driving my wife's 2001 Yukon XL. Lucky for the fellow who hit me I was not in my F-250 Superduty Diesel.

The Officer who gave me my ticket said that the Yukon/Suburban type wehicle was the safest he had ever seen. He said that virtually all the police officers he knew who had families either already drove one, or wished they could. You could not make a better selection. (By the way, the OnStar system was a real lifesaver"

Wee had been talking about going smaller with our next purchase, but if you could have seen the two cars on Friday night. You'd be driving a suburban on Monday. I will always opt for what is best for my family, no matter what anyone else says. I pay for it and put the gas in it. It is my decision.

I currently own a Toyota 4Runner (2WD, leather).

I plan to own a Toyota Land Cruiser next year.

I want to own a Hummer H2.

Compared to cards of the pre-Nader era, modern cars are too small and too limited to be good general purpose vehicles for suburban or town & country family life. Commuter pods and standard sedans are fine for single commuters who live in the Gay District five blocks from work (or for old folks with no kids), but the rest of us live miles from everything and have crap to haul around -- and we don't always know when we're going to have to haul it. Hence the advent of the SUV, a vehicle comfortable enough for daily use but capable of hauling six Americans (or a mattress) if the situation arises.

The ideal family car of today would be something the size of one of the old Lincoln or Woody station wagons, with modern engine, drivetrain, and other innards -- which is precisely what an SUV is.

Actually, when I spent 9 weeks in SoCal on business a couple years ago, my rental was a brand-new, black Crown Vic.

Never did I experience anything remotely resembling aggression from any other driver on the freeways. On the contrary, I was astonished at how polite and accommodating everyone was. It was very different than what I had been warned to look out for on LA freeways.

I can't begin to imagine what the addition of a couple small antennas could have done. ;-)